I'm not sure trailoring a dog or wife on an open trailer like that is legal, you might want to ask someone in your state who knows about such things (SPCA eg). ..andfranky I don't think it is wise.  However, if you search on the Guzzi sites (wildguzzi.com), there are several knowledgable trailor guys there.

do an all posts search, been hashed over here b4...
have seen vendors advertise hitches and trailer wiring for the ls 650
google?

j wrote on 03/01/09 at 20:10:21:


I think y'all missed this part.

Mothers on pedal bicycles pull trailers with their babies in them.  One gentleman here built a hitch that mounted to the siderail and clamped to the shock mounts for extra strength.

My slip-on sissy-bar luggage worked so well I have been thinking of a gooseneck trailer hitch simply attached to the sissy bar.  Trailer would be an ultra light, maybe 50 pounds unladen with at most a gross weight of 200 pounds.  To that purpose I have two spare front wheels in the garage.

I think the problem with a trailer isn't just the brakes. A couple of issues exist. One, the extra width of trailer in traffic. Two, the trailer doesn't exactly follow you around a curve - it tracks toward the inside of the curve and has to be watched. Three, it needs running lights and stop and turn signals, and there might be some inadequacies with the electrical system on the bike. Most important, it will be unbraked and if you ever have to stop in a hurry it may very well jackknife you and drop you on the pavement.

I had an old(er) welder in ND make a hitch that was easily removable for my 650. The trailer I use is a little 4'X4' kit with 8" tires I got from Menards, a mega chain hardware/homeware store.

The trailer with a plywood floor and a 7' 2"X8" bolted on (to carry the bike behind the pickup) weighs in at a hundred pounds. With that behind the bike you don't even know it's there except for the bouncy noise it makes.

The problem I've found towing with the Sav is that when the weight back there gets up around the weight of the empty bike, things start going screwy with control. A wobble starts to build slowly in the front end at a certain speed and doesn't go away when you slow back down. I tried redistribution of the weight and that helped, but not enough for me to try hauling more than 200 pounds gross so far I'm a musician and the bike would be a nice way to haul gear to one nighters.

A big part of that problem could be that my fork oil needs replacing and is low on one side I think. I intend more testing this spring once I can get the bike out from under the snow covered tarp in the back yard to work on the front end. And I wonder if a fork brace might help with the stability issue as well.

I agree that a sidecar would be cool for my needs. Too costly, and unless it's a quick remove, I think that's not in the future plans. And although the little woman on a recliner on the trailer at 60 mph would make for an interesting arrest report . . .

http://bikepics.com/members/jazzcarter/00savage/

Jack